Single Idea 23882

[catalogued under 22. Metaethics / B. Value / 1. Nature of Value / e. Means and ends]

Full Idea

Everything that can be taken as an end cannot be defined. Means, such as power and money, are easily defined, and that is why people orient themselves exclusively towards the acquisition of means.

Gist of Idea

Ends, unlike means, cannot be defined, which is why people tend to pursue means

Source

Simone Weil (Reflections on Value [1941], p.31)

Book Reference

Weil,Simone: 'Late Philosophical Writings' [Notre Dame 2015], p.31


A Reaction

Nice, but too neat, because so many activities can be treated either as means or as ends, and often as both. It makes sense that people pursue what is clear to them.